Car Shopping Terms You Should be Aware of Before You Buy a New Car

There's nothing better than the smell of a new car and the feeling of a new steering wheel in your hands. Car shopping leads to a freeing result of automotive autonomy and the freedom to go wherever a tank of gas and four wheels can take you. But, before you can get there it's a confusing and sometimes stressful process. It can get especially confusing when you factor in the various terms and jargon you probably don't know unless you've been through the process before. 

If you need a little refresher on what these various car shopping terms are and mean, Toyota of Orlando is here to help!

Car Terms You Should Know

Term 1) Blue Book Value

If you're looking to trade in your current ride to have more money to work with, you'll want to know the blue book value. This number is what your pre-owned vehicle is worth and how much you can expect to get from a trade-in. Kelley Blue Book is the most often used resource for calculating this value and can be used before you arrive to Toyota of Orlando so you know what you're working with. 

Term 2) Down Payment

When financing or leasing during car shopping, most drivers put a down payment toward their purchase. This is a certain amount of money (determined by the purchaser) that lessens the amount you need to pay off for your lease or financing. 

Term 3) Financing

When Orlando car shopping you have options for how you want to purchase your vehicle. If you're looking for more of a vehicle ownership approach, financing is the way to go. As many drivers don't all the cash needed to purchase a car just lying around, financing allows drivers to use a bank or dealership sourced loan plus a down payment to pay for their vehicle. 

Term 4) Extended Warranty

Many new Orlando Toyota vehicles come equipped with great warranties to cover technical failures and other possible happenstances. But, for the consumer's piece of mind, extended warranties are offered to lengthen the mileage or time drivers have to cash in on their warranty. 

Term 5) Trade-In

Selling your pre-owned ride back to the dealership during car shopping is what's called a trade-in. Essentially you're trading your current ride for a new one. 

Term 6) Term

This defines the length amount of time you'll be financing or leasing your Orlando Toyota car. Lease terms typically last for 36 months (3 years) while financing loans typically go for 5 years. 

Term 7) Trim-Level

Cars are heavily categorized to make segment and ensure that drivers are getting the vehicle and accessory package they want. A vehicle's make is the brand that produces it (Toyota, Chevy, Ford), the model is the specific vehicle (Camry, Malibu, F150), and each model is then broken down into trim levels that define what accessories are available. 

Do you have more questions about the car shopping process? Luckily, Toyota of Orlando is here to help and make the process easy and painless. Give us a call at (407) 298 4500 with any questions and shop our inventory online anytime!